Wednesday, 16 April 2014

Easter chocolate egg nests - two ways

Last week at the swimming pool, a little girl befriended Sylvia and me. She started to tell us how much she loved egg wraps. When I said I didn't like eggs she was astonished. Sylvia however likes to joke that my favourite eggs are Easter eggs. I guess she is right. The novelty amuses me. Yet commercial Easter eggs are not always the best quality and I quite like my chocolate other ways. Like in a nest. With Easter eggs.

Yes, it is starting to feel a lot like Easter around here. Sylvia is beside herself with excitement as only a 5 year old can be. I bought the M and Ms speckled eggs. They were opened in an untimely way but were not long for this world anyway. I quite liked the crunchy centres. The Cadbury mini eggs were bought a day later. I was relieved to find they were gluten free so I could use them for some nests for my celiac niece. But the solid chocolate centres were less pleasing than the M and Ms.

Chocolate Easter egg nests seems quite a common Easter recipe. It was my first time making them. I decided to try them two ways.

One was a BBC recipe using cornflakes. After making them I realised this is actually a recipe with which British children are very familiar. E said he had them without eggs when he was little. I think they are similar to Australia's chocolate crackles. The chocolate coating was quite soft and took some time in the fridge to set. Even so they were quite fragile

The other recipe used coconut. I only had white choc chips and a block of 70% chocolate. White chocolate seemed too sweet for anyone and dark chocolate seemed too bitter for children. (But any sort of chocolate could be used.) These ones set quickly and were quite hard. They reminded me of coconut roughs. Which is a very good thing.

These nests were easy to make and even easier to eat. They are great to make with young children. Sylvia was able to help counting out eggs, stirring the mixture and arranging the eggs in the nests.

Both versions could be made without the eggs at any time of year. The cornflake ones would be best in a cupcake paper (to stop them falling apart) and I would make the coconut chocolate into small balls if you didn't them it big enough to hold an egg or three. In fact, you could even make them smaller nests with just one egg.

These nests are great for sharing. The day after making them we had a busy day that was fuelled by nests. Sylvia took some down to my parents to share with her cousins (and grandparents). E and I went to see Le Week-end at the movies and had some coconut nests after our dinner at the fish and chip shop. (I had a burger.) Earlier in the day Sylvia and some school friends went to see Shrek at the movies and we took the leftover easter eggs along, which the kids loved!

I can see these being repeated in Easters to come. Maybe we will experiment with them further. Crispy noodles, muesli and shredded wheat are other ideas. I have also seen them made with butterscotch chips or chopped honeycomb. And I particularly love the sound of these coconut macaroon nutella nests. The possibilities are endless. And delicious.

Melt chocolate and choc chips in the microwave or on stovetop. Stir in coconut. Place spoonfuls of mixture on a lined baking sheet. Press three mini eggs into the middle of each nest. Allow to set at room temperature. (This didn't take took long - perhaps an hour!) Keep in an airtight container.

Melt chocolate, golden syrup and butter together in microwave or on stovetop. Mix in cornflakes until well covered. Spoon a heap onto a lined baking tray and press three eggs into the middle. Set in the fridge for an hour or two. Keep in an airtight container at room temperature.

I've seen Chcolate Egg Nests all over Pinterest, Johanna but it just never ocurred to me how versatile they are. I bet they would not only be good for Easter but perhaps for a May Day celebration also.

It sounds like you got plenty of people to share in the delight. As you say, the "possibilities are endless." Thank you so much for sharing, Johanna. Just in case I don't "see" you before Easter, a very Happy and Joyous Easter to you and your family, Johanna. I can just imagine Sylvia's excitement:)

Thanks Louise - I'd never made them before and found the range of ideas a bit overwhelming - I think they would be great any time of year - you could always use round chocolates in the nests - hope you had a good easter too louise - have been rather slow in doing the rounds lately

Thanks Kate - easter food is so much fun - though I think easter egg wrappers aren't as fun as they were when I was a kid - too much branding and not enough fun patterns - all the more reason to make more easter craft and food ourselves :-)

Your nests are very cute! I don't think I'm familiar with chocolate cornflake Easter treats, but I'd be very happy to embrace them. I also used to really like those speckled eggs and suspect I'd like the M&M eggs too if I was to venture into dairy eggs (and perhaps I will yet).

I hope you have a great long weekend and Sylvia's excitement bubbles along at a level of not too much and not too little ;)

Thanks Kari - Sylvia's excitment has been delightful - though her enthusiasm for chocolate eggs could be a little less intense :-) I think you would love the ease of the easter nests - I have seen them online a lot but they are not part of my traditions - though give me a few years and they might be

Love Easter nests as you obviously all did too. I used to make the cornflake variety to decorate my mother's Easter simnel cake and fill them with little eggs. It makes me feel quite nostalgia and I'm sure Sylvia will remember them in years to come.

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Recipes and reflections in which our vegetarian heroine dreams of being tall and graceful as a giraffe; being a goddess in the kitchen; and being gladdened by green gadgets, green food and green politics because green is the colour of hope. See About Me for more info.